MTC Week #68 - Triple "R" (Requiem, Retirement & Ryan)

At the end of any notable week with the Choir, I always find myself in the same emotional place--a place I don't mind being. And that place is "grateful."  

The Temple Square Chorale and the Orchestra at Temple Square put on their annual concert this past Friday and Saturday. As mentioned previously, the 2nd year Choir members participated with the 1st year members in this experience-- and all that we had been working on during these past four months came to fruition this weekend as we sang Mozart's REQUIEM. After some final rehearsals (last Saturday, and this past Tues, Wed, and Thurs), and some excellent warm-ups each night from Cherilyn, Ryan Murphy gave us some final notes and then expressed his gratitude for us. He said that this Chorale has been one of the best he's had the privilege to work with and cited skill and consistency as two reasons for that assessment. Helping us remember 2 Timothy 1:7 "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.", he left to go conduct the orchestra portion of the program while us choir members waited a bit for our turn to take the stage.

We took to the stage, ushered in so expertly by our fellow choir member Gerald

Gibb, and enjoyed presenting to the audience Mozart's Requiem. From a music

technicality standpoint, there were several things could have done better on. But our spirits were strong and overall we sounded great based off of post-concert feedback. Even Ryan was thoroughly impressed as he spoke to us Saturday night about our performance. As we reviewed the mistakes we had made, we went back out on stage Saturday night and nailed it! It was a good feeling. And it was very rewarding seeing the 1st years so happy about what they, and all of us, had accomplished. In fact the friend I stood by (1st year Dave Lawrence, who I had sung with at BYU) was all smiles!
We felt....grateful.

Truth be told, while I struggle a bit singing pieces that are in another language (simply because the words, not being in English, don't convey the same meaning to my spirit and heart), I found that singing this Requiem was amazing. The depth, the emotion, and the overall meaning of the songs were so impacting. From the loud shouts of Dies Irae! to the haunting melody of Lacrimosa, I found myself on an emotional rollar coaster. While the official meaning of "requiem" is a "mass for the dead", I like to focus on the origin of that word which is "rest." And are we not all on a journey to find rest? Rest from the cares of this world and from our troubles and sorrows? Through Christ, this is all possible.

While attending Chorale again this year has come at a cost (Tuesday nights are one of the busiest nights for my family), I am sad to have it end. Befriending many of the 1st year folks, singing an excellent work of music, and learning from Ryan Murphy, have all been wonderful experiences.

With the Requiem and the Chorale experience finished, we assembled this 

morning for Music & the Spoken Word. Unlike every other week however, today's broadcast was the last for several members of the choir (27 I think it

was). These individuals were set to retire today after serving anywhere from 5 to 20 years. As such, everyone's emotions were on the sentimental and sad side--particularly for those who were retiring and those who knew well those who were retiring. Even some of us who didn't have much tie to these individuals (being too new to the choir) were emotional as well! The reason for this, I concluded, was two fold. First, even though we didn't know these choir members very well, they were still a part of the "choir family" and the choir would not be the same without them. Second, tender emotions surfaced just by putting ourselves in their shoes. Would time go by as quickly for us as it did for them? Anyhow, trying to get through singing "Homeward Bound" on the broadcast was a mess given the applicability of the lyrics.

View of the retirement ceremony (thanks RB)

The retirement ceremony itself was very nice. Bro. Wilberg had each retiree come up, and while they were being presented a plaque, he would read some words that that retiree had written down. Such words spoke of choir memories, notable events, and general feelings of having sung in the choir. It was all both interesting and contemplative and while I could write more about feelings I was having, I was mostly just grateful that I get to have the experiences I'm having.

Scott Russon (left) and Dave Peterson (right)
were two of the retirees. Scott was in my ward
growing up and we often did musical numbers
together in my earlier years.

A photo of the marble plaque given to each retiree

To end today's post, (and to address the third "R" in today's title), my great friend Ryan Bateman and I arranged for all of us Ryan's in the choir to get a photo taken. And since one of the retirees was named Ryan, today had to be the day! Congregating outside the Tabernacle for a bit, Deb Gheris took a few photos of all eight of us. And we were grateful that associate conductor Ryan Murphy joined us! Results of this unique photo shoot will be posted as soon as the photos are available. Much thanks to Ryan Murphy, Ryan Bateman, Ryan Omer, Ryan Withers, Ryan Bell, Ryan Larsen, and Ryan Snarr for participating in this fun event. After all, us Ryan's have got to stick together!

Until next time, God be with you.